Metallurgical Practice In The Witwatersrand District, South Africa (f815f882-6744-40ed-8a79-495e4279e327)

Discussion of the paper of F. L. Bosqui, presented at the San Francisco meeting, September, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 101, May, 1915, pp. 997 to 1033. H. A. WHITE, Springs, Transvaal (communication to the Secretary*). -It is, as the author points out in his valuable paper, a, fact, that in many plants the "trommel washings" are allowed to become eyesores, but the simpler system of pumping the entire product direct to the tube-mill circuit will avoid the extra expense of separation and small-scale treatment when one considers the relative distance of the points and the proportionately small amount of water. It is a matter of record that in stamp batteries the increase of weight has been developed concurrently with the increased use of tube mills, but independently and on its own merits. The satisfactory duty, excellent running time, and freedom from breakages in the newer mills, such as the Modder Deep, with 2,000-1b. stamps, will probably go far in removing some of the conservative prejudices mentioned by Mr. Bosqui. The success of the City Deep trial of the Nissen stamp cannot be entirely attributed to better feed distribution and discharge effects (published experiments on two-face discharge mortar boxes showed no advantages). Attention is directed to the treatment costs given by the author both before and after the increased capacity resulting from the addition of 16 Nissen stamps at Modder B. It will be observed that the only item of cost resisting the tendency to reduction caused by increased tonnage is that of milling, which has risen 1.3c. With reference to the provision for amalgamation in the new plans, it seems obvious that a great loss of head would be eliminated by passing the tube cone overflow over a separate top series of plates; three at the top and three at the bottom will effect the maximum amalgamation. This plan is followed at the Princess Estate and Gold Mining Co., Ltd., Modderfontein Deep Levels, Ltd., and Geduld Proprietary. Mines, Ltd., but elsewhere reliance is placed upon ample cone capacity and the underflow only is passed over three plates after going through the tube mill, while the overflow is passed direct to the cyanide works; both methods avoid the largely unnecessary elevation of considerable quantities of water, fine sand and slime involved in Mr. Bosqui's scheme.